I Wish To Never Leave Your Side - Chapter 27

The next morning, when Qiu Yan woke up, Mo Lishen was once again nowhere to be seen.

This time, she directly pushed open the bedroom door and glanced toward the living room. Sure enough, Mo Lishen had already left.

Qiu Yan smoothed her hair and shuffled out of the bedroom in her slippers.

As she turned, she suddenly noticed a yellow sticky note on the refrigerator.

【Congee is in the pot. Help yourself.】

The handwriting was bold and decisive, with sharp, powerful strokes.

This was the first time she had seen Mo Lishen’s handwriting. Qiu Yan carefully peeled off the sticky note, brought it to her room, found a box to store it in, and only then went to wash up.

Afterward, Qiu Yan served herself a bowl of congee, took a slice of cake from the refrigerator, and placed the two mismatched items on the dining table, eating with great relish.

The previous night, she had found another film crew and planned to visit them today. It would be even better if she could land a role.

…

Mo Lishen had held Qiu Yan throughout the night. Unable to sleep with someone else nearby, her mind raced as she organized her upcoming work.

Only when faint light seeped through the curtains did Mo Lishen gently withdraw her arm from Qiu Yan’s embrace. She went to the kitchen to prepare the congee, then left Qingshui Bay.

Bai Hua had left a car for her. Mo Lishen drove back to her own place, took a shower, caught a couple hours of sleep, and headed straight to the Mo Corporation for work.

“Any news on Zhao Qiulin?” Mo Lishen sat in the business car, flipping through the documents she would need for the upcoming meeting.

“He’s been missing for three days now. We haven’t been able to reach him.” Bai Hua frowned, swallowing the rest of her words.

“Speak your mind.” Mo Lishen glanced up at her. Having worked with Bai Hua for many years, she could easily read her thoughts.

“Some people in the company are spreading rumors that Zhao Qiulin’s disappearance…” Bai Hua glanced in the rearview mirror, “…they’re making baseless claims that it’s related to you.”

Mo Lishen lifted her eyelids and gently closed the file.

“Oh? How interesting.” A faint, contemptuous smile curled at the corner of her lips as she crossed her arms and leaned back in her seat.

…

Employees at the Mo Corporation usually kept their distance from Mo Lishen. With this incident unfolding, no one wanted to get involved and went out of their way to avoid her. Only when they accidentally crossed paths did they reluctantly offer a greeting.

Mo Lishen paid them no mind and proceeded to the meeting as usual.

Mo Licheng was also present at the meeting. As Bai Hua’s key person of interest, she observed that throughout the entire session, Mo Licheng’s gaze remained fixed on Mo Lishen.

Sure enough, after the meeting ended, Mo Licheng stopped Mo Lishen.

“Do you need something?” Mo Lishen cast him a sidelong glance.

Mo Licheng leaned against the conference table, arms crossed as he looked at Mo Lishen.

“Can’t I just show some concern for our young President Mo?” A sly smile played on his lips.

“You’d be better off spending that time cozying up to your half-dead grandfather.” Mo Lishen retorted sarcastically and made to leave.

Mo Licheng chuckled, brushing off nonexistent dust from his sleeve. “I wonder if President Mo is acquainted with Zhao Qiulin?”

Mo Lishen halted and turned back, curious to see what tricks he had up his sleeve.

“He’s an old friend of mine, but he went missing a few days ago. No one can reach him. I was wondering if President Mo might have any clues.” Mo Licheng furrowed his brow, feigning concern.

Mo Lishen casually pulled out a chair and sat down. “But I heard that Zhao Qiulin paid a visit to your home just a week ago?”

“Oh? Young Master Mo is quite well-informed. But everyone in the company says my friend’s disappearance is related to you,” Mo Licheng stood up and walked over to Mo Lishen. “After all, wasn’t the scar on his face left by you?”

Mo Lishen remained silent, spinning the ring on his finger as he calmly watched him.

Mo Licheng straightened his posture. “Let’s not talk about that anymore. Change of subject. I heard that a couple of days ago, you caused quite a stir over that little lover of yours.”

A ripple of emotion flickered in Mo Lishen’s calm eyes.

“Who would have thought that even you, Mo Lishen, would have someone you care about?” Mo Licheng stood up and patted Mo Lishen on the shoulder.

“What was her name again?” Mo Licheng tapped his forehead as if suddenly remembering. “Oh, right, right, it’s Qiu Yan, isn’t it?”

“She’s quite pretty, with some resemblance to my late aunt.”

Mo Lishen’s gaze gradually turned icy, his fingers never leaving the mechanism of his ring.

“That Yu Xiamu girl was just playing around. If it were me, I’d make sure your lover lives in a drunken stupor, lost in dreams.” Mo Licheng deliberately emphasized each word, drawing them out.

“Alright, it’s getting late. I still need to go look for my good friend. I’ll take my leave now, Young Master Mo.” Mo Licheng buttoned his suit, his face feigning “concern” as he walked out of the conference room.

Mo Lishen closed his eyes and let out a heavy sigh.

“Send someone to follow Qiu Yan immediately. Don’t let her be alone.”

“Yes.”

“Also, look into that Zhao Qiulin and find out what’s going on.”

“Yes.” Bai Hua wore a worried expression, repeatedly glancing up to observe Mo Lishen.

Mo Lishen stood up, leaning on the chair, and immediately noticed Bai Hua’s troubled look.

“Tsk.” Mo Lishen frowned.

Bai Hua quickly regained her usual stern demeanor, standing up straight.

Mo Lishen turned and walked out of the conference room. “Double the year-end bonus.”

“Thank you, Mr. Mo.”

Having followed Mo Lishen for so many years, Bai Hua often found her hard to read. But one thing she knew for sure: Mo Lishen wasn’t a bad person, it was just that others couldn’t see her goodness.

In her third year working for her, when her family encountered trouble, Mo Lishen had without hesitation given her a sum of money, calling it a bonus. She granted her three months of leave and promised her job would be waiting for her when she returned.

Mo Lishen was indeed moody, but to Bai Hua, she was an exceptionally righteous boss.

When someone can earn another’s unwavering loyalty, it means there must be something truly worthwhile about them.

…

Qiu Yan didn’t have time to visit Yuanyuan today. By the time she left the film set, it was almost time for Mo Lishen to get off work.

On her way, she often noticed two men in suits, but she was in a hurry to catch the bus and get back to cook for Mo Lishen, so she didn’t pay them much mind.

Today, her luck was particularly good. Initially, she was just doing odd jobs on the set, but then an extra suddenly got into an argument with the director. The director, in a fit of anger, dismissed her. Since Qiu Yan happened to be nearby pushing equipment, the director directly assigned her to fill the vacant role.

Her character would be around for quite a while, at least three days of filming. Over those three days, she could earn at least eight hundred yuan.

The more Qiu Yan thought about it, the happier she felt. She plated the last dish and brought it to the dining room, then took two small cakes out of the refrigerator.

Mo Lishen had bought so many that she couldn’t bear to let them go to waste, so she had to eat them as quickly as possible.

Just as Qiu Yan finished setting the table, Mo Lishen returned.

Qiu Yan didn’t even have time to untie her apron before rushing to the entryway. Tilting her head, she smiled warmly at Mo Lishen. “You’re back.”

Seeing Qiu Yan seemed to brighten Mo Lishen’s mood, and she found herself smiling back almost unconsciously.

“Mm.”

“I’ll go serve the food then.”

Qiu Yan was getting better and better at figuring out the dishes Mo Lishen loved, and Mo Lishen’s appetite had noticeably increased as a result. But today, she ate very little.

Qiu Yan could tell she was probably upset, but she didn’t ask. Instead, she kept putting more food into Mo Lishen’s bowl.

“When I went grocery shopping today, the elderly lady selling vegetables gave me an extra scallion. Guess what she said,” Qiu Yan tried to keep the conversation going.

“What did she say?” Mo Lishen now occasionally engaged in simple exchanges with her.

“She said, ‘Young lady, you’re so pretty, you remind me of myself when I was young. Here, Grandma will give you an extra scallion.'” Qiu Yan chuckled and glanced at Mo Lishen.

But there wasn’t even a hint of a smile on Mo Lishen’s lips. In fact, the atmosphere seemed to grow heavier.

Qiu Yan pressed her lips together, lowered her head to take a bite of rice, and then pushed a small cake toward Mo Lishen.

“Want to try it? It’s really good.”

“Mm.” Mo Lishen used the fork beside her to take a small bite. “Not bad.”

Qiu Yan smiled and placed another piece in front of her.

Mo Lishen obliged by tasting that one too and nodded slightly.

After they finished eating, Mo Lishen sat on the sofa and buried her head in Qiu Yan’s shoulder.

Qiu Yan wrapped her arms around her, gently patting her back.

“Let me tell you something, I was really lucky today at the film set…”

Before Qiu Yan could finish, Mo Lishen suddenly straightened up and stared at her, her gaze icy.

“Film set?” Her thin lips barely moved as she spoke.

Qiu Yan didn’t understand what had upset Mo Lishen but nodded honestly.

“You went back to acting?” Mo Lishen’s voice was low as she pushed Qiu Yan away slightly.

Qiu Yan looked at her in confusion, unable to comprehend why her acting would anger Mo Lishen.

“Have you forgotten how you were abducted last time?” Mo Lishen stood up abruptly, looking down at Qiu Yan with suppressed fury in her eyes.

Qiu Yan was frightened, shrinking into the corner of the sofa.

Mo Lishen let out a heavy breath, her tone cold. “Starting tomorrow, you are not allowed to go to any film set. I’ll have someone keep an eye on you at all times.”

With that, Mo Lishen grabbed her coat and left Qingshui Bay.

Qiu Yan sat frozen on the sofa, Mo Lishen’s words echoing in her mind.

After what felt like a long time, Qiu Yan suddenly realized something. Barefoot, she stood up from the sofa and ran to open the door.

Sure enough, two men in suits were standing outside, the same two she had seen that afternoon.

The two men nodded slightly when they saw Qiu Yan. “Miss Qiu, where are you headed?”

Qiu Yan swallowed hard, shaking her head belatedly before closing the door.